Women who use chemical hair straightening products are more at risk of developing womb cancer, a new study has warned.
The early signs of womb cancer include bleeding or spotting from the vagina after menopause, having unusually heavy periods, experiencing vaginal bleeding between periods or noticing a change to vaginal discharge.
Anyone with a womb is at risk of womb cancer.
According to the NHS, most womb cancer usually starts in the lining of the womb (endometrium), which is also known as endometrial cancer.
How serious the womb cancer is largely depends on how big the tumour is, whether it has spread and a person’s general health.
According to Cancer Research UK, womb cancer - or uterine cancer - is the fourth most common cancer in women in the UK.
In the new study, 33,497 women aged between 35 and 74 took part in the research, led by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
The goal of the study was to ascertain potential risk factors for certain cancers and other health conditions.
The US women were then followed for almost 11 years, which resulted in a total of 378 womb cancers being diagnosed.
“We estimated that 1.64% of women who never used hair straighteners would go on to develop uterine cancer by the age of 70; but for frequent users, that risk goes up to 4.05%,” said Dr Alexandra White, head of the NIEHS Environment and Cancer Epidemiology group and lead author on the new study.
She added: “This doubling rate is concerning. However, it is important to put this information into context - uterine cancer is a relatively rare type of cancer.”
Hair straightening product warning
It found that women who used hair straightening products frequently were more than twice as likely to develop womb cancer compared to those who didn’t.
Frequent use was defined as more than four times in the previous year.
This was seen mostly among Black women.
However, the study did not find that the relationship between straightener use and womb cancer incidence was different by race.
The link may be due to more Black women using chemical straightening products than other demographics.
Harmful chemicals
Hair-straightening products have been a topic of much controversy over the years.
The researchers found a number of dangerous chemicals found in straighteners, including parabens, bisphenol A, metals and formaldehyde.
Formaldehyde, which is used in a Brazilian blowout hair treatment - a popular treatment in the UK - is a known carcinogen.
Previous research has linked it to miscarriage, stillbirth, menstrual disorders and female infertility.
However, the researchers found no associations with womb cancer for other hair products that the women reported using, including hair dyes, bleach, highlights or perms.
It’s been found that chemical exposure from hair product use, particularly straighteners, are of more concern than other personal care products.
This is because there is an increased risk when it comes the scalp absorbing the products, due to either burns or lesions caused by straighteners.
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